The number of Sioux Falls high school students taking Advanced Placement (AP) tests was up one year after teachers and students expressed concern that a later school start date would hurt exam performance.

Students took fewer AP tests in the 2015-16 school year, which teachers and students alike attributed to the Sioux Falls School District's calendar change.

Now, two years into the calendar change, both the number of students enrolled in AP courses and the number of students passing the national AP exams increased, according to information presented to the school board this week.

"I think maybe there was more of a comfort level with the new calendar," Superintendent Brian Maher said. "I don't know that, just hypothesizing ... but (2016-17) was the second year of the calendar, not the first."

AP courses give students a leg up on college by providing a more rigorous class. They also have a final exam, set nationally, which students can use in some schools to get college credit.

With an extra 304 AP exams taken in 2016-17, the number of total exams rose above where it was before the calendar changed to a post-Labor Day start.

That number also pushes the Sioux Falls School District over its five-year goal to increase AP participation ahead of schedule. The school board will reassess that goal next month, said board President Kate Parker.

During the calendar debate for the 2018-19 school year, several high school students and teachers voiced concern that a late start gave students less time to prepare for the national AP tests, which are typically scheduled the first week in May.

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While it's those stressors remain as the late-start continues this fall, the overall performance of students on AP exams has increased since the calendar change.

Just over 7 in 10 students who took an AP exam last year passed, which is consistent with the year before.

High School Curriculum Coordinator Kristin Grinager attributes the exam performance and increased enrollment to a commitment on the part of schools to emphasize the benefit of AP classes.

Students as early as freshmen year are told that AP classes can help them earn cheap college credit and get a taste of what college coursework will be like. It's one of a handful of options students have to get a jump on college before they graduate.

"The high schools have done a good job of promoting the idea that this is a great opportunity for someone to experience that college rigor while in high school," Grinager said.